India's Semiconductor Mission: Two Deals For Fab Units To Be Signed By October-November, Says MoS IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar

India's government has announced plans to sign deals for the production of up to 2 mega units by October-November.

These will focus on manufacturing silicon fabs and compound fab units.

Union Minister for State for Electronics and Information Technology of India, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, stated that the approval for fabs will be granted before October or November of this year.

This approval will pave the way for the manufacturing of actual wafer fabs.

Global companies recently visited Gujarat for the "SemiconIndia 2023" event, with the aim of expanding semiconductor production in India.

This demonstrates the growing interest and potential for the semiconductor industry in the country.

The proposals for semiconductor units in India from Foxconn and Vedanta will be evaluated separately by MoS Rajeev Chandrasekhar.

Chandrasekhar also stated that, companies will invest in India due to the strong demand for the precious commodity and the country's reputation as a reliable partner in the electronics industry, the Times of India reported.

The minister stated that the electronics industry in India is rapidly growing and aims to reach $300 billion by 2026.

The country is on track to achieve this target, which would lead to significant demand for semiconductors.

It is estimated that the semiconductor market will reach $110 billion by 2029.

In addition, it is crucial for India to become a trusted and resilient partner in the semiconductor sector for the benefit of the global community.

The Union minister commended the Prime Minister's vision in this regard.

The total investment in the factory, with support from the Centre and Gujarat government, is expected to be $2.75 billion.

This announcement was made by Micron during the SemiconIndia 2023 event.

The minister emphasised the importance of India's emergence as a reliable player in the semiconductor industry.

The government's collaboration with Micron and the Gujarat government will contribute significantly to the country's growth in this sector.

Having Micron, one of the world's largest semiconductor memory companies, as the first to invest in India is a significant accomplishment.

Chandrasekhar expressed confidence that many more companies will follow Micron's lead, recognising the advantage of being the first to enter the Indian market.

The minister is optimistic about surpassing China in the semiconductor race with lower investments, as companies have responded favourably to the opportunities in India.

Chandrasekhar said to TOI, "Just to give you a sense of the semiconductor intensity in electronics, China exports $900 billion worth of electronics but simultaneously needs to import almost $600 billion of semiconductors. They have spent $200 billion in the last 20 years on semiconductors and flopped."

He further continued, "On the other hand, we are spending just $10 billion (India's semiconductor incentive package for investors) and we will be in a position to achieve what even bigger countries — who have spent 10 times more money — have not been able to achieve in over 20 years. We have a big opportunity, at least in semiconductors, to surge ahead of China."